@c15t/scripts 3.0.0-alpha.1 → 3.0.0-alpha.3

package/docs/concepts/consent-state.md

@@ -0,0 +1,357 @@
+---
+title: Consent state reference
+description: How c15t saves choices, gates IAB vendors, hydrates server records
+  and keeps browser tabs and storage in step.
+group: concepts
+---
+
+This reference covers the edge cases behind the model in
+[how consent works](./how-consent-works.md). You need it when you
+build custom consent UI, run c15t across subdomains, or debug a choice that
+changes between tabs.
+
+## Gate IAB vendors on the TC string
+
+Under an IAB policy, a script, network rule or iframe that names a `vendorId`
+or IAB purposes is an IAB target. It runs only while a confirmed TC string
+grants what it declares: purpose and vendor consent for `iabPurposes`, purpose
+and vendor legitimate interest for `iabLegIntPurposes`, and opt-ins for
+`iabSpecialFeatures`. Every category it names must also be free of
+restrictions, so GPC or strict scope blocks it.
+
+A refused category is the one exception. It does not block an IAB target that
+processes only on legitimate interest, after publisher restrictions, because
+the TCF lets that processing run without consent. The visitor's control for it
+is the objection, which the legitimate interest signals record. The category
+itself stays refused: its `effectivePermissions` entry is `false`, and targets
+that name only the category, or that also declare a consent purpose or special
+feature, stay blocked.
+
+## When a choice is saved
+
+A save records the choice in the browser first and sends it to the backend
+afterwards. The stock banner, preference dialog and IAB surfaces in every
+framework adapter, and the browser client's `acceptAll()`, `rejectAll()`
+and `save()`, close without waiting for the backend. In order:
+
+1. In the click task, the explicit choice and effective permissions change,
+   `onChoiceRecorded` and `onPermissionsChanged` run, gated scripts, iframes
+   and network rules follow the new permissions, and the surface leaves the
+   active state. Its exit animation still plays.
+2. In the next task, the choice is written to the cookie and localStorage.
+3. After that write is queued, the request to the backend starts.
+4. When the request settles, the kernel emits `command:save:completed`. The
+   promise returned by `kernel.commands.save()`, React's `performAction()` and
+   Svelte's `saveConsents()` resolves or rejects only then.
+5. If the save turned off a category or vendor that was granted, the page
+   reloads in the next task, after `onBeforeConsentRevocationReload` runs.
+   Removing a script cannot stop code that already ran, so the reload starts a
+   page with only permitted code. With several saves in flight, it waits for
+   the last one. Set `reloadOnConsentRevoked: false` to handle revocation
+   yourself.
+
+A failed request does not reopen the surface or roll the choice back. The
+kernel emits `command:error`, which reaches the `onError` callback in adapters
+that accept one, and queues the payload in localStorage. The queue is replayed
+after the next successful initialization and when the browser comes back
+online, up to 10 attempts over 7 days. A replay carries the original action
+time and policy snapshot token, so the backend records when the visitor
+decided, and a duplicate submission resolves to the same consent record. A
+backend that signs policy snapshot tokens rejects a replay made after the
+token expires, which is 30 minutes by default for the self-hosted backend. A
+save still queued by then is recorded only in the browser.
+
+IAB surfaces close in the click task too, but an IAB choice is recorded only
+after its TC string is encoded, which can wait for the TCF library to load.
+If that local step records nothing, for example because the vendor list
+failed to load, the surface comes back so the visitor can try again.
+
+## Preserve records during hydration
+
+Server helpers return records with policy information and evaluation time.
+Forward that configuration intact. Copying an allowed category into a receipt
+would invent a grant and lose its original confirmation time.
+
+Valid v2 records can be read without a startup rewrite. The next explicit action
+writes the v3 format. See [migration](../upgrade-v3.md) for expiry, partial saves,
+custom transports and backend contract changes.
+
+## Keep open tabs in step
+
+Tabs and windows on the same origin (scheme, host and port) share the consent
+cookie and localStorage. When a visitor rejects in one tab, every other open tab
+on that origin applies the rejection without a reload. Scripts and features
+gated on `effectivePermissions` lose permission, subscribers are notified once
+and `onPermissionsChanged` fires. Clearing records in one tab returns the others
+to the active policy's defaults: an opt-in policy denies optional categories and
+shows the prompt again.
+
+Tabs on another subdomain that shares the consent cookie do not share
+localStorage, so the browser sends them no `storage` event. They pick up the
+change on their next focus or visibility change, or when you reconcile
+yourself as described in
+[Reconcile yourself or turn it off](#reconcile-yourself-or-turn-it-off).
+
+The `storage` event only exists for localStorage. When localStorage is
+unavailable (blocked by the browser, a sandboxed frame or a privacy mode) and
+c15t stores in the cookie alone, another tab's change arrives only on the next
+focus or visibility change, or when you call `runtime.reconcileStorage()` or
+`persistence.reconcile()`. c15t does not poll the cookie or use a
+`BroadcastChannel` for this.
+
+Browser persistence reads stored records again at these moments:
+
+| Moment                                                                   | What happens                      |
+| ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | --------------------------------- |
+| Another tab or window on the same origin changes a c15t localStorage key | Reconciles on the `storage` event |
+| The page becomes visible again                                           | Reconciles on `visibilitychange`  |
+| The window regains focus                                                 | Reconciles on `focus`             |
+| The network reconnects                                                   | No storage read                   |
+
+Several triggers in quick succession run one reconciliation in a later task.
+Reconnecting does not read storage, because going online changes nothing in
+browser storage. On reconnect the kernel retries saves the backend did not
+accept and a failed initialization. Save retries do not write the cookie or
+localStorage. A write that follows initialization obeys the rules in
+[Ordering with pending writes](#ordering-with-pending-writes).
+
+Every adapter that mounts browser persistence does this: the React, Next.js and
+TanStack Start providers, Vue, Svelte, Astro, the script tag and
+`createConsentRuntime`. With `persistence: false` nothing is stored or read.
+
+### What a reconciliation applies
+
+Stored records are merged into the ones in memory:
+
+* Category decisions merge per category. Each category keeps the decision with
+  the newer confirmation time, so a tab that only changed marketing never
+  reverts another tab's newer measurement decision.
+* The notice dismissal and the vendor record are single decisions. A stored one
+  at least as new as the one in memory replaces it; an older one is ignored.
+* When two tabs record decisions in the same millisecond, the one stored first
+  wins in both tabs.
+* Tabs keep one subject. A stored subject is considered only when the record
+  that carries it changed, never on focus alone. It replaces a subject the tab
+  generated on its first save or copied from storage, so a tab that opened
+  before another tab stored a subject joins it. A subject id the server
+  resolved (at init, from a prefetch or in a save response) is replaced only by
+  a strictly newer stored choice, and an identity set with `identify()` is
+  never replaced.
+* Under an IAB policy, the TC string follows the reconciled choice. See
+  [How the TC string is reconciled](#how-the-tc-string-is-reconciled).
+* A record removed from readable storage since this tab last saw it present is
+  cleared, and the active policy decides again. A record this tab never saw in
+  storage, such as a receipt merged from the server after `identify()` or a
+  choice seeded while storage was blocked, stays.
+* Blocked storage, or bytes that do not decode, change nothing. A failed read
+  never grants a category.
+
+Expiry is not decided here. The applied records are evaluated at the time of the
+read, the same way as at startup.
+
+### How the TC string is reconciled
+
+Under an IAB policy, a tab adopts the TC string another tab stored, unless that
+TC string conflicts with the reconciled choice. A conflicting TC string is
+withdrawn, and `__tcfapi` reports no consent until the next save. Vendors never
+receive a stale TC string: c15t withdraws it, or holds it back, before
+`__tcfapi` publishes.
+
+1. The `@c15t/iab` module loads the TC string the other tab stored, with its
+   purpose, vendor and special-feature selections, so `__tcfapi` and the
+   preference controls show the choice now in force. Selections the visitor
+   changed in this tab without saving are kept.
+2. A missing or older stored TC string leaves the current one in place, unless
+   the current one conflicts with the reconciled choice. Then it is withdrawn.
+3. A category denied after the TC string was saved conflicts if the TC string
+   grants any of its purposes. A partial selection saved through IAB, which
+   records its category as denied because not every purpose is granted, keeps
+   its TC string.
+4. A TC string confirmed before the choice's newest decision no longer
+   describes it and is withdrawn, unless a newer receipt replaces it. That
+   receipt is adopted even when its TC string is identical, because TC strings
+   round their time to the day and custom-vendor selections live only in the
+   receipt. The receipt's expiry then applies.
+5. The TC string and its receipt (`euconsent-v2`, `c15t-iab-authority-v1`)
+   belong to one origin. After a save on a sibling subdomain that shares the
+   consent cookie, this subdomain reports no consent through `__tcfapi` until
+   it saves again.
+6. A tab reloads the TC string when another tab on the same origin stores a
+   new one. This covers a save in the same millisecond, or one that changed
+   only vendors.
+7. When two tabs save in the same millisecond with different selections, the
+   more restrictive TC string wins in both, so a revoked vendor is never
+   advertised again. If each grants something the other denies, neither is
+   published until the next save, and the stored receipt is removed so a page
+   opened later does not restore it.
+8. When another tab removes the receipt or clears localStorage, this tab
+   withdraws its TC string too, because a page opened now would find none. A
+   receipt this tab was still decoding is not installed.
+9. The removal after a tie checks that the stored receipt is the one it read.
+   localStorage has no conditional removal, so a receipt another tab stored a
+   moment earlier can still be removed. Every tab then withdraws its TC string
+   until the next save, so the race only ever withholds consent.
+
+### Clearing records across tabs
+
+`clearRecords()` removes every record and then stores the time of the clear,
+the clear epoch, under its own key: `c15t-epoch` in localStorage and a cookie
+of the same name (`<storageKey>-epoch` with a custom `storageKey`). Clearing
+never removes it. Every consent record written afterwards also records the
+epoch it was written under.
+
+A decision confirmed before the epoch was made before the clear, so it is void
+wherever it turns up. A decision stamped in the very millisecond of the clear
+counts only if it comes from a tab that had already seen that clear, so a tab's
+own choice right after its own clear stands while another tab's decision in the
+same millisecond does not. A stored record left with no decisions after the
+clear is void too, subject included.
+
+* A tab that reconciles only after another tab cleared and saved again drops
+  its pre-clear decisions instead of merging them back. Its subject from before
+  the clear is dropped too.
+* A tab that missed the clear writes only decisions it made after it. Its queued
+  write of an earlier decision is discarded, so it cannot bring back a cleared
+  record.
+* Browser hydration and server reads (`readStoredRecordsFromCookieHeader`, used
+  by the Next.js, TanStack Start, Nuxt, SvelteKit and Astro helpers) apply the
+  same rule, so a server render agrees with the browser.
+
+Records from before any clear, including v2 and legacy records, read as epoch 0
+and are unaffected. A corrupt epoch, or one that cannot be read, also reads as
+0: it voids nothing, so a failed read never grants a category. A consent record
+whose own epoch field is corrupt is kept, and only its epoch is ignored.
+
+Each clear moves the epoch forward, even when the device clock went back, so a
+later clear never lets earlier decisions back in. Two clears in the same
+millisecond therefore leave the epoch a millisecond ahead, and a decision saved
+in that millisecond is void. An epoch up to one hour ahead
+of the clock is kept, as it is when the clock was set back after a clear. Until
+the clock catches up, decisions saved in that window are void too. An epoch more
+than an hour ahead is treated as corrupt and reads as 0, so a clear never writes
+one: after the clock went back more than an hour, the new epoch is capped at an
+hour ahead of the clock.
+
+That cap is a known limit. A cleared record carries times from before the clock
+went back, and a runtime that missed the clear can write those times back. The
+capped epoch is lower than them, so once the clock has recovered, such a
+decision counts again. Leaving the epoch uncapped does not help: every tab
+whose clock is still behind reads it as corrupt, which voids nothing. Times
+alone cannot order a clear against decisions stamped by a clock that went back
+more than an hour.
+
+This changes the stored format. After a clear, the consent cookie carries
+`&e=<time>` (16 bytes) and the localStorage record an `epoch` field (22 bytes),
+and the epoch cookie itself holds a 13-digit time. Visitors who never cleared
+their records store exactly what they did before. An older c15t build rejects
+both the cookie and the localStorage record once they carry the epoch, so a page
+still running one treats the visitor as undecided. Under an opt-out policy that
+page grants optional categories by default until a new choice is saved, and the
+configured prompt may appear again. Deploy the new build to every page of the
+site before visitors can clear their records.
+
+### When the cookie and localStorage disagree
+
+When both copies hold a decision for a category from the same millisecond and
+the two conflict, the denial wins.
+
+The subject and IAB metadata come from the cookie. A server response, such as
+server-side consent restoration, and a sibling subdomain sharing the cookie
+with `crossSubdomain` can both rewrite it without touching this origin's
+localStorage, so the local copy can be the older one. The local copy's subject
+is used only when this browser's last consent write reached localStorage but
+not the cookie, for example because the cookie grew past the size limit, and
+the cookie has not changed since. Such a write stores the cookie as it stood
+under `<storageKey>-cookie-miss` in localStorage; the next write that reaches
+the cookie, or a clear, removes it. When localStorage rejects a write that the
+cookie takes, for example because storage is full, the older localStorage copy
+is removed.
+
+When a server render seeded the page from the consent cookie
+(`skipHydration`), that seed stays authoritative. A denial that reached only
+localStorage is still applied on top of it when the page mounts, since it can
+only restrict, if it is newer than the seeded decision or from the same
+millisecond as a seeded grant. A stored grant is not.
+
+The notice dismissal and vendor denials are stored twice as well. A vendor
+list in localStorage at least as new as the cookie's adds its denials but never
+lifts one the cookie holds; a copy confirmed before the last clear is ignored, so its
+denials never come back. The newer notice dismissal applies; it still only hides a
+notice with the fingerprint it names. The consent record follows the rules
+below.
+
+The consent record is stored twice: as a cookie, which a server render reads,
+and in localStorage. The cookie is authoritative. A well-formed cookie wins
+even when it has expired, so a local copy can never bring back a grant the
+cookie no longer carries.
+
+A browser can still drop a cookie write, for example when the record grows past
+the cookie size limit, while localStorage takes it. A denial in the local copy
+that is newer than the cookie's decision for that category is therefore applied
+on top of the cookie. A newer local grant is not, so a dropped cookie write only
+ever leaves the visitor with less permission. A server render sees only the
+cookie; after a dropped write that carried a denial, the browser is the stricter
+of the two.
+
+When the two copies were written under different clear epochs, each loses its
+decisions from before the later epoch first, and the same rule applies to what
+remains. A later epoch in the local copy never lets its grant replace a cookie
+denial. The subject and IAB metadata come from the copy written under the later
+epoch; a record written before the clear in force keeps its later decisions but
+no subject.
+
+A server render cannot know about a clear that never reached a cookie. If the
+page could write localStorage but its cookie writes failed during
+`clearRecords()` (cookies blocked for the page, or a cookie setter that
+throws), the removal of the consent cookie failed too, and so did the epoch
+cookie. The browser then applies the clear from localStorage, while a server
+render still reads the old consent cookie until the next successful cookie
+write. The same applies to a consent cookie set with a different `domain` than
+the current `storageConfig` uses, which the clear cannot remove.
+
+### Ordering with pending writes
+
+A tab writes its own choices in a later task, not during the click. Before it
+reads storage, it lands its own queued writes, so a reconciliation never undoes
+the visitor's latest action in that tab. A queued write follows the same rules
+as a read: it stores the per-category merge of its choice and the stored one,
+and never replaces a newer notice or vendor record. It keeps the stored subject
+unless this tab identified a different user.
+When a slow save response returns a server subject id, the tab adds it only to
+the record it wrote; it does not recreate records another tab cleared or
+overwrite another tab's newer choice.
+
+Two tabs that write at the same moment can both read storage before either
+writes, and the later write can then drop the other tab's category decision.
+The tab whose decision was dropped still holds it, and on its next
+reconciliation it writes it back, merged with what storage holds. It does so
+only for decisions it actually stored itself, never for one a clear voided or
+another tab replaced with a newer one.
+
+If another tab's change reaches this tab while one of its saves is pending, the
+save depends on how far it got. A save not yet sent is dropped. A request
+already sent still reaches the backend, which may record it; this tab ignores
+the response, so it queues no retry and applies no subject id from it. A save
+already queued for retry keeps its original decision time.
+
+### Reconcile yourself or turn it off
+
+Browsers send no event for a change made in the same document, or for a cookie
+rewritten without a localStorage change, such as a `Set-Cookie` response header
+or another subdomain sharing the cookie. The next focus or visibility change
+picks it up. To apply it at once, call the method yourself:
+
+```ts
+// Runtime owners: returns true when any record changed.
+runtime.reconcileStorage();
+
+// Kernel owners with createPersistence from c15t/modules/persistence:
+persistence.reconcile();
+```
+
+To keep storage but stop automatic reconciliation, pass `sync: false` in the
+persistence options, for example `createConsentRuntime({ persistence: { sync:
+false } })` or `createPersistence({ kernel, sync: false })`. The manual methods
+still work.
+
+`dispose()` removes the listeners and cancels a scheduled reconciliation.

package/docs/{guides → concepts}/data-fetching.md

@@ -1,23 +1,17 @@
 ---
-title: Data fetching and transports
-description: Choose cached manifests, backend init or offline policy resolution,
-  and understand where consent records are saved.
-group: guides
+title: Data fetching
+description: How c15t gets policy data through a cached manifest, backend /init,
+  the browser or offline rules, and where consent choices are saved.
+group: concepts
 ---
 
-## Start with Inth and a cached manifest
+## Compare the fetching paths
 
-Use Inth for managed policy and consent records. For a Next.js application with
-a server, use a cached manifest to resolve policy in your application. Route
-browser consent traffic directly to Inth, or optionally use a Next.js rewrite
-to keep those requests on your app's origin. Follow the
-[Next.js manifest setup](https://c15t.com/docs/frameworks/next/data-fetching).
-
-Backend ownership and data fetching are separate decisions. Inth manages the
-backend for you. A [self-hosted backend](https://c15t.com/docs/self-host/quickstart) uses the same
-protocol while you operate its database, policies and availability. A static
-site can still call Inth. Only `offline()` deliberately removes consent backend
-requests and stores choices locally.
+Where policy resolves and where choices are saved are separate from who runs
+the backend. Inth and a [self-hosted backend](https://c15t.com/docs/self-host/quickstart) speak
+the same protocol, so every path below works with either. Only `offline()`
+removes backend requests. For a recommendation by framework, start with
+[choose your setup](./choose-your-setup.md).
 
 | Fetching path                  | Where policy resolves                                                                 | Where choices are submitted | Choose it when                                                                                         |
 | ------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
@@ -44,6 +38,16 @@ Do not put secrets, visitor identifiers or consent records into a manifest.
 Keep personalized init responses out of shared caches. Changing a policy also
 requires a refresh strategy for cached or build-time manifests.
 
+## How manifest mode counts visitors
+
+The backend counts visitors from `/init` requests, and manifest resolution
+skips them. To keep the count, the server adapters send a session report after
+each resolution: the host posts to the backend's `POST /sessions` from the
+server, after the response. The browser sends nothing, and the report stores
+no identity; the visitor's IP address and user agent are forwarded under the
+backend's usual IP handling. Static output resolves in the browser and sends
+no report. Set `reportSessions: false` on an adapter to turn it off.
+
 ## What does regular `/init` do?
 
 `hosted({ url })` uses `${url}/init` for initialization and `${url}/subjects` for
@@ -54,7 +58,7 @@ can belong to Inth or your own c15t backend.
 import { hosted } from 'c15t';
 
 export function createConsentMode(backendURL: string) {
-  return hosted({ url: backendURL });
+	return hosted({ url: backendURL });
 }
 ```
 
@@ -81,9 +85,9 @@ separate policy reads and record writes. With a backend rewrite mounted at
 import { hosted } from 'c15t';
 
 export const mode = hosted({
-  url: '/api/c15t',
-  initURL: '/api/c15t/init',
-  assertDecisionInputs: true,
+	url: '/api/c15t',
+	initURL: '/api/c15t/init',
+	assertDecisionInputs: true,
 });
 ```
 
@@ -105,11 +109,11 @@ and TLS connection to the consent backend. The app server still connects to
 the upstream backend for manifest refreshes and consent writes. Vendor scripts
 and vendor requests keep their own origins.
 
-Set the absolute upstream endpoint through `C15T_BACKEND_URL` in Next.js server
-configuration. The endpoint URL is public connection information, not a secret.
-The browser uses `/api/c15t` without needing the upstream URL. A static export
-cannot serve a Next.js route or rewrite at runtime; use the absolute Inth URL or
-a proxy provided by the static host instead.
+The rewrite destination and the init route use the absolute upstream endpoint,
+such as `https://your-project.inth.app`. The browser uses `/api/c15t` without
+needing the upstream URL. A static export cannot serve a Next.js route or
+rewrite at runtime; use the absolute Inth URL or a proxy provided by the static
+host instead.
 
 ## When should I use offline mode?
 
@@ -134,7 +138,7 @@ export const mode = offline();
 With no `policyRules`, the current offline transport uses the recommended rule
 pack. Supplying `policyRules` replaces that pack. Unknown country and region are
 real resolution inputs; offline mode does not discover a visitor's location.
-Use [policy rules](https://c15t.com/docs/frameworks/next/concepts/policy-presets) to understand
+Use [policy rules](./policies.md) to understand
 matching and defaults, and test the missing-location case.
 
 Offline mode is an explicit architecture choice, not an automatic fallback for
@@ -160,4 +164,4 @@ refresh. In the recommended Next.js setup, the browser should call only
 upstream destinations.
 
 Test different locations, missing location headers, GPC, returning choices and
-backend failure. See [verification](./verify-consent.md).
+backend failure. See [verification](../guides/verify-consent.md).

package/docs/concepts/how-consent-works.md

@@ -0,0 +1,123 @@
+---
+title: How consent works
+description: What c15t decides on each page load, the difference between a
+  permission and a recorded choice, and what happens when a visitor saves.
+group: concepts
+---
+
+## What c15t decides on each page load
+
+On every page load c15t answers one question for each consent category: is
+this allowed right now? To answer it, c15t:
+
+1. Selects a **policy** for the visitor, usually by country and region. The
+   policy says whether optional categories start denied (opt-in) or allowed
+   (opt-out), and whether to show a banner.
+2. Reads the visitor's **stored choice** from a cookie and localStorage, if
+   there is one that still matches the policy.
+3. Reads **privacy signals** such as Global Privacy Control (GPC).
+
+The result is a set of **permissions**, one per category. Components, script
+loaders, embeds and your own code read those permissions. Nothing optional
+runs until the policy has resolved: while it loads, and if it fails, every
+optional category is denied.
+
+A banner is only the interface. It does not stop a script you load with a
+plain `<script>` tag or a vendor SDK you initialize yourself. To gate that code,
+register it with c15t. See [integrations](../integrations/overview.md).
+
+## Categories
+
+| Category        | Use it for                                         |
+| --------------- | -------------------------------------------------- |
+| `necessary`     | Code the site cannot work without. Always allowed. |
+| `functionality` | Optional features such as support chat.            |
+| `measurement`   | Analytics and usage measurement.                   |
+| `experience`    | Personalization.                                   |
+| `marketing`     | Advertising, retargeting and pixels.               |
+
+Assign a category by what the code does, not by what would be convenient.
+Calling analytics `necessary` does not make it necessary.
+[Consent categories](./consent-categories.md) explains which
+categories the preference dialog shows and how policy scope affects them.
+
+## Policies
+
+A policy has a **model** and a **prompt**:
+
+| Model     | Optional categories before a choice                               |
+| --------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |
+| `opt-in`  | Denied until the visitor allows them.                             |
+| `opt-out` | Allowed until the visitor refuses them or sends a privacy signal. |
+| `iab`     | Controlled by an IAB TCF consent string.                          |
+| `none`    | Allowed, with no prompt.                                          |
+
+| Prompt   | What the visitor sees                                                          |
+| -------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
+| `choice` | A banner asking for a decision.                                                |
+| `notice` | A notice they can dismiss. Dismissing records an acknowledgement, not consent. |
+| `none`   | Nothing on load. The policy can still require a way to open preferences.       |
+
+With [Inth](https://inth.com) you manage policies in your project, and the app
+receives them from the backend. Changing a stylesheet or importing a preset in
+the browser does not override a hosted policy.
+[Policies](./policies.md) covers presets, scope, and why a banner may
+not appear.
+
+## A permission is not a recorded choice
+
+These two values answer different questions, and mixing them up is the most
+common integration bug:
+
+* **Permission** (`effectivePermissions`, `useConsent('measurement')`) answers
+  "may this run now?" Under an opt-out policy it can be `true` before the
+  visitor has done anything.
+* **Recorded choice** (`explicitChoice`) answers "what did the visitor decide?"
+  It only changes when the visitor accepts, rejects or saves preferences.
+
+| Task                                                 | Read                |
+| ---------------------------------------------------- | ------------------- |
+| Load a script or render an optional feature          | Permission          |
+| Show what the visitor chose, or report consent rates | Recorded choice     |
+| Decide whether a prompt is needed                    | `promptRequirement` |
+| Find out why a region behaves differently            | `policyRule`        |
+| Check that the policy loaded                         | `resolution.status` |
+
+Never turn a permission into a saved choice. Hydrating server state, reading a
+cookie or rendering a component does not count as a visitor action.
+`onChoiceRecorded` fires only for a visitor's action; `onPermissionsChanged`
+also fires when a choice expires or a privacy signal changes.
+
+## Notices and privacy signals
+
+Dismissing a notice acknowledges it. It grants nothing and leaves earlier
+refusals in place.
+
+GPC is a browser setting that asks sites not to sell or share data. c15t reads
+it live on every evaluation and applies the restrictions your policy configures
+for it. It never becomes a stored refusal: when the browser stops sending GPC,
+the restriction ends. The backend also sees the current value.
+
+## What happens when a visitor saves
+
+When a visitor clicks Accept, Reject or Save, c15t:
+
+1. Updates permissions and closes the banner or dialog in the same click.
+   Scripts, embeds and network rules follow the new permissions immediately.
+2. Writes the choice to the cookie and localStorage.
+3. Sends the choice to the consent backend. If the request fails, the choice
+   stays saved in the browser and the request is retried later.
+4. Reloads the page if the visitor turned off something they had allowed.
+   Code that already ran cannot be unloaded, so the reload starts a page with
+   only permitted code. Set `reloadOnConsentRevoked: false` to handle revocation
+   yourself.
+
+The [consent state reference](./consent-state.md) documents the exact
+ordering, retries, server hydration and how open tabs stay in step.
+
+## Where consent data comes from
+
+A consent backend supplies policies and stores consent records. Use Inth, run
+the [c15t backend](https://c15t.com/docs/self-host/overview) yourself, or keep policies in the
+browser for local development. [Choose your setup](./choose-your-setup.md)
+walks through the options for your framework and hosting.

package/docs/concepts/policies.md

@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+---
+title: Policies
+description: How policy models, prompts and scope decide what c15t asks
+  visitors, where to change the rules, and why a banner may not appear.
+group: concepts
+---
+
+## What the policy controls
+
+A policy rule selects the permission model, categories, prompt and persistent
+privacy controls for a visitor. Your app reads the resolved rule and effective
+permissions. It should not choose a different rule just to hide a banner.
+
+| Policy setting        | What your app should expect                                                                                                          |
+| --------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
+| `model: 'opt-in'`     | Optional categories in scope wait for consent.                                                                                       |
+| `model: 'opt-out'`    | Categories in scope can be allowed before a choice. Saved refusals and privacy signals can restrict them.                            |
+| `model: 'none'`       | Categories in scope are allowed without an initial prompt. Stock consent controls stay hidden unless the rule grants privacy rights. |
+| `prompt: 'choice'`    | The banner asks for a choice when the current state requires one.                                                                    |
+| `prompt: 'notice'`    | Dismissing the notice records an acknowledgement, not a consent grant.                                                               |
+| `prompt: 'none'`      | No automatic prompt. The rule can still require a way to open preferences.                                                           |
+| `scopeMode: 'strict'` | Optional categories outside the rule's scope stay denied.                                                                            |
+
+Keep a persistent preferences entry point wherever the policy provides that
+right. A visitor who dismissed a notice or rejected tracking still needs a way
+to revisit their choice. Stock components read the rule's rights; custom UI
+must do the same.
+
+Use `effectivePermissions` to gate a script or embed. A `true` value under an
+opt-out rule does not mean the visitor clicked Accept. Read `explicitChoice`
+when you need the visitor's recorded decision. See
+[how consent works](./how-consent-works.md#a-permission-is-not-a-recorded-choice) for these distinctions.
+
+## Where to change the rules
+
+For Inth, configure policy rules on your hosted project. The app receives those
+rules through the configured [data-fetching path](./data-fetching.md). Importing
+`recommendedPolicyRules()` or changing browser styling does not override the
+hosted policy.
+
+For a backend you operate, use the
+[policy packs guide](https://c15t.com/docs/self-host/guides/policy-packs). It covers
+`manifest.policyRules`, preset selection and custom matchers. Browser-only
+setups own their rules locally; see
+[choose your setup](./choose-your-setup.md).
+
+Presets are starting configurations. Select them for your actual processing,
+and review their assumptions before allowing optional categories by default.
+A country match does not establish a legal basis for a vendor's data use.
+
+## Why the banner may be absent
+
+A missing banner can be an expected policy outcome or an initialization problem.
+Check `resolution.status` before interpreting the active model.
+
+| State                                                   | What to check                                                                                                                         |
+| ------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
+| A policy matched and `promptRequirement.kind` is `none` | The rule does not ask for an initial prompt, or the stored records already satisfy it. Check persistent preferences separately.       |
+| A policy matched but a category is denied               | Inspect `effectivePermissions`, `explicitChoice`, `privacySignals` and `restrictions`. A saved refusal or GPC can keep it denied.     |
+| No policy has matched                                   | Check backend connectivity, location inputs and policy configuration. Optional categories stay denied while resolution is unresolved. |
+
+Do not treat `policyRule` alone as proof that a policy resolved. The snapshot
+also carries a safe rule for evaluation while resolution is pending or failed.
+Use `resolution.policy` only after checking for `status: 'matched'`.
+
+The local `recommendedPolicyRules()` pack uses opt-in rules for Europe and
+Québec, opt-out for its supported US privacy states, and a no-prompt `none`
+default for other known locations. An unknown country uses its strict opt-in
+fallback. A US country with a missing state gets the US opt-out fallback.
+These are the local pack's defaults, not a promise about your Inth project.
+Browser-only mode does not discover a visitor's country from their IP address.